Figure 1: shades of red
Red is the color of fire and blood, so it is associated with energy, war, danger, strength, power, determination as well as passion, desire, and love. Red is a very emotionally intense color. It enhances human metabolism, increases respiration rate, and raises blood pressure. It has very high visibility, which is why stop signs, stoplights, and fire equipment are usually painted red. In heraldry, red is used to indicate courage. It is a color found in many national flags (Group, 2002-2015 ).
Red brings text and images to the foreground. Use it as an accent color to stimulate people to make quick decisions; it is a perfect color for ‘Buy Now’ or ‘Click Here’ buttons on Internet banners and websites. In advertising, red is often used to evoke erotic feelings (red lips, red nails, red-light districts, ‘Lady in Red’, etc). Red is widely used to indicate danger (high voltage signs, traffic lights). This color is also commonly associated with energy, so you can use it when promoting energy drinks, games, cars, items related to sports and high physical activity (Group, 2002-2015 ).
Light red represents joy, sexuality, passion, sensitivity, and love.
Pink signifies romance, love, and friendship. It denotes feminine qualities and passiveness.
Dark red is associated with vigor, willpower, rage, anger, leadership, courage, longing, malice, and wrath.
Brown suggests stability and denotes masculine qualities.
Reddish-brown is associated with harvest and fall.
- Meaning of Red in Men And Women
Women seem to be more attracted to cool Reds which lean toward Violet. This range of preferences spans all the way from Cherry Red toward Magenta and Fuschia. When lots of white is added to these Reds to create Cool Pastel Pinks, the meanings of red changes dramatically. The subconscious and conscious reactions shift toward the soft and ultra-feminine the paler the tint becomes (Williams, 2008 – 2015).
Men, on the other hand, generally prefer warm Reds which lean toward Orange.This range of preference begins somewhere near Tomato Red and goes all the way toward Indian Red and Brick. When Black or Grey is added to create Warm Shades and Tones, the resulting Reddish Browns are very earthy and masculine (Williams, 2008 – 2015).
- Positive and Negative Traits of the Color Red
Positive keywords include: action, energy and speed, attention-getting, assertive and confident, energizing, stimulating, exciting, powerful, passionate, stimulating and driven, courageous and strong, spontaneous and determined (The Color Red, 2009-2015).
Negative keywords include: aggressive and domineering, over-bearing, tiring, angry and quick-tempered, ruthless, fearful and intolerant, rebellious and obstinate, resentful, violent and brutal (The Color Red, 2009-2015).
RED IN CULTURAL PERSPECTIVE
Figure 2: Xuannan Diabolo Culture Festival held in Beijing, china. org.cn
Figure 3: Bindi, Ethnic Jewels Magazine, 2015
Figure 3: Red Army Borscht, britishfoodinamerica
- Meaning of Red in Other Cultures
Below are the according to the color wheel artist website (Williams, 2008 – 2015).
- In Russia Red symbolizes Communism and revolution.
- In China, brides wear Red and it is considered a Good Luck color.
- To most Asians Red means happiness and prosperity.
- In India Red is a symbol of life-giving purity.
- In the Middle East the color symbolism of Red is Danger and Evil.
- In Greece Red is considered a dominant male color.
- In Japan Red is considered a life-giving color associated with female reproduction.
- In Christianity, Red combined with Green is associated with Christmas.
- To some Native Americans specially the Cherokee, Red symbolizes the East and Sacred Fire.
- In South Africa Red is the color of mourning.
- In Amsterdam Red sells sex in the Red Light district, a legalized zone of prostitution.
Uses of Red in popular cultures
- In North America, Valentines Day is celebrated with Red cupids and decorations.
- Retail items on sale are often called ‘red tag items’ and have red sale stickers.
- Red traffic lights and stop signs indicate stop.
- Fire Engines in many countries are painted Red.
- OSHA Coding in Red signals danger, stop, and fire protection equipment.
- The Red stripes in the US flag symbolize hardiness and valor.
- The Canadian flag is entirely Red with a red maple leaf and two red stripes.
- A baseball team in the US is called the Cincinnati Reds.
- A rugby team in Queensland, Australia is called the Reds.
- A hockey team in the US is called the Detroit Red Wings.
- During special ceremonies Christian priests wear red robes to symbolize the blood of martyred saints.
- In popular culture, the Devil is often associated with Red and has red skin.
- Ancient Roman soldiers carried Red battle flags to indicate their power.
- In Eastern philosophy Red is associated with the Root Chakra at the base of the spine and rules sexual energy.
- In Astrology, Red is associated with Gemini.
- A Ruby is the traditional gift for a 40th Wedding Anniversary.
- Children love the fairly tale ‘Little Red Riding Hood’.
- Dorothy wore magical Ruby Red Slippers in the Wizard of Oz.
- Movie titles with Red include ‘Red Dragon’, ‘Hunt for Red October’, ‘Reds’, the ‘Red Violin’, ‘The Scarlet Pimpernel’, ‘The Thin Red Line’ and ‘Crimson Tide’.
- Popular songs with Red in the title include, ‘Little Red Corvette’ by Prince, ’99 Red Balloons’ by Nena and of course ‘Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer’ by Gene Autry.
References
Group, Q. S. (2002-2015 ). color meaning. Color Wheel Pro – See Color Theory in Action.
http://www.color-wheel-pro.com/color-meaning.html
The Color Red. (2009-2015). empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.
http://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/color-red.html
Williams, S. (2008 – 2015). The Many Meanings of Red. color wheel artist.
http://www.color-wheel-artist.com/meanings-of-red.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shades_of_red
http://www.china.org.cn/english/olympic/243415.htm
http://ethnicjewelsmagazine.com/category/adornment-of-the-body/
http://www.britishfoodinamerica.com/An-Eighteenth-Century-Interlude/the-practical/Red-Army-Borscht/#.VYpXivmqqko